III

The Penny Drops

Sounds of chains clanging echoed throughout the long, dark room. Annie squinted her eyes, focussing them as hard as she could, attempting to gain sight in the empty room of nothingness. Muffled screams of frustration came from within her, the towel across her face all but silencing her cries. Her ragged-looking hair fell in front of her face as she squirms in an attempt to rise from the chair. With her arms shackled behind her back, she wriggles and tugs in vain. Rocking side to side, the chair lifts slightly off the ground. A eureka moment strikes her brain, quickly causing her to shuffle her weight left-and-right in an attempt to topple her chair. Suddenly, with a loud thud, she hits the floor head-first unable to shield herself from the harsh collapse on the concrete. With her legs still bound to the the chair, she kicks like a mule in a bad mood, but to no avail. Giving up, she squeaks one last time before sighing and relaxing her body, lying limp and defeated on the floor.

The sheet-metal walls vibrate as a far door swings open. A long beam of light immediately floods the room suddenly impairing Annie's vision entirely for a brief moment. Slowly regaining her sight, she squints her eyes attempting to make sense of the two figures wandering towards her. Her muffled squeals begin again as the two men draw closer, not a drop of emotion between them. She made up for their lack of emotion, panicking as one leaned over her, lifting her to her feet by her tiny forearms. Raising his finger to his mouth before removing her gag, she falls silent. Staring into the man's deep, yet emotionless eyes, she attempts to mutter some words but is unable to find her voice. He begins speaking,
"Annie..." He pauses.
"Annie....." He repeats himself.
She found herself unable to answer - was she frozen in fear? Did something more happen to her? Why couldn't she talk? Confusion set in, panicking her. Trying not to freak too much, she spins her head in circles attempting to see some more of her setting with the newfound light available. Very little decor was visible beyond the usual assortment of tools (or weapons, depending on your skill set) lying littered around the large desolate space. She attempts to speak again, this time realising something was seriously wrong. The man continues to stare, just inches from her face.
"Annie?!" He grows frustrated. Leaning into the inside of his jacket, she hears a click before the cold feeling of a gun barrel pressed against her head. "Annie...? Last chance, Annie..." Panicking, she attempts to shout but still nothing...

Suddenly, she notices her hands are not bound as she freely swings them around in a frenzied panic. It is not dark and there is no man pressing for an answer. Confused, she looks around the bright room taking a few moments for reality to set in... "Phew. Just a dream... And I can talk!" She slumps herself back against her pillows, sighing with relief.

***

It was another average day for Annie and her new life, she still remembered nothing and of course her beaming smile was still plastered across her ignorant face. Swaying around the room to the sweet whistle of her record player, she enjoyed Armstrong's soft sound of 'Body and Soul'. his tender voice soothing her delicate ears. Annie was a woman of simple pleasures - lovely sights and lovely sounds. She was unaware that today would be a huge fork in the road for her and while most would believe the change to come would be an improvement for her life, it was still unknown on how she'd handle it. Only time would tell.

A sudden knock at the door had her gleefully swinging it open, met with nothing more than "You ready?" She squints her eyes, the man inviting himself in and pointing at the picture on her wall marked 'F'. Nodding in understanding, she finally speaks, "Ah.. F.. Yes.. Of course. Erm." She looks down at her clothing, "Yeah.. I think I'm ready."
"Good. C'mon, then. There's lots to do."

As they approach the car, Annie sparks a terrible idea, "Can I drive?!" F raises an eyebrow, looking at her a little confused before continuing, "Sure.. Where are we going?"
"Errrr..." she pauses, putting serious thought into the question, "I don't know!"
"Heh... Yeah, I think I'll drive, then." F chuckles at her, much to Annie's disgust.

***

"Annie?!" Her ears whistle unbearable. "Are you okay, Annie?! Look at me, woman!"
"What the fuck just happened?" Annie rubs her head in an attempt to rid the pain. Looking down at her hand, she notices a puddle of red within her palm. The sight of blood was not one that would usually bother Annie. But today, it had her passing back out. The man continues to shake her, attempting to bring her round again, "FOR FUCK SAKE, ANNIE!! WOULD YOU GET THE FUCK UP?!" Finally, he lost his patience but Annie was out like a light.

He grunts as he drags her from the middle of the road to the sidewalk, gently laying her on her back before continuing to attempt finding her consciousness. He slaps her across the face twice, the second slap much harder than the first. With the harder slap, her body bolts upright,
"Woah! Where am I?"
"Finally! Damn, you're hard to wake. We're in New York. I'm F. We're friends." He explains.
"F..? Hm." She scans her memory, "Well.. I don't remember you?"
He squints his eyes and laughs before responding, "Of course you don't... You have a memory condition. Are you okay to walk? The car is just there, come with me..." He helps her to her feet, shuffling her towards the car before slamming the door behind her. He rushes round to the drivers side and the two make for a quick escape.

"But what happened, F..? Why does my head hurt so fucking much?" She quizzes him.
"You were hit by a car, you silly bitch. We were meant to be robbing a bank! But you couldn't even make it across the road without hurting yourself!" He chuckles before continuing, "It's okay.. The bank will still be there next week. How's your head? You bounced off the ground pretty hard!"
Rubbing her head, the lump growing with each minute that passes, "I think I have a second head... But I'm okay."

Nodding, he continues en route back to Manhattan, Bebop's HQ.

***

Grunting as she fights the chair for comfort, she stares at the tumbler of dark rum placed in front of her, "What's this?" - "Medicine," F replies, "Drink it. You'll feel better." Unsure on the medical qualifications of the man, she looked at him strangely before chucking it down her throat. Coughing and spluttering, she manages to hold the sizzling sensation inside her chest and avoids throwing it back up again. "That was horrible." He chuckles, pouring her another.

"Annie... I have to ask you a question... Don't be alarmed - it's an easy question but... I have to know." He pauses. "What's my name?"
She raises her eyebrow - why was this man asking his own name? Surely, he must know who he is?! Even 'Lil' Miss Forgetful' remembers who she is! (Most of the time). In consideration of how he asked, she offers him a serious answer,
"Well, you're F - of course!"
He nods, before asking her another, "Of course... F. And where are we?"
She thinks a little harder this time, taking a few more moments to look around. Nothing seems familiar to her but suddenly, out of nowhere, a memory pops up in her head - a memory of the two of them in the car. "Wait... Hang on..." She rubs her head, the pain still affecting her severely. The rum from her glass disappears down her throat before she offers an answer,
"New York? ... Is it New York? Are we in New York?!" She looks at him, convinced she's right.
"Hmm. So I'm F and we're in New York. Yeah.. You're correct. And it's been, what... A half hour since I told you this?" He looks at her, a blank expression on his face. "Well... Don't you see?" Screwing her face up as he quizzes her, she becomes obviously confused.
"Your memory, Annie... You're remembering things."

Annie looks around the room. Suddenly, the penny drops, "Oh, my God!"